


Path of the Broken Mage

by GuardianSoulBlade



Category: Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms, Fate/stay night (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M, GuardianSoulBlade, Path of the Broken Mage, Route: Fate (Fate/stay night), fate/stay night - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-19
Updated: 2016-03-27
Packaged: 2018-05-29 12:10:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6374230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GuardianSoulBlade/pseuds/GuardianSoulBlade
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Morgan Le Fay summons a Heroic Spirit to murder King Arthur, what came to her was the Mage Shirou Emiya. Forced to fight the woman he loves against his will, he is captured and taken to Camelot as a prisoner. What will he do when Arturia sees him only as a heartless monster who butchered her knights?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Demons Do Not Cry

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Note: Yes, in some legends, Arthur has sons, but they all died tragically, it fits perfectly into the Nasuverse, they all had E-rank luck! Loholt was murdered by Kay so he could take credit for killing the giant Logrin. Llacheu was slain in battle, Duran dies at Camlann, and Arthur slew Amhar for unknown reasons, and probably the one that I find the saddest, Gwydre got gored to death by a boar while on a quest.
> 
> Shirou's reaction to her children is going to be great.

**Path of the Broken Mage**

_"Pain provides an opportunity for heroism; the opportunity is seized with surprising frequency."_  
**_― C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain_ **

**Demons Do Not Cry**

Morgan Le Fay quietly approached her prisoner, he was a defiant one, all forms of torture did nothing to break his resolve, he would not become her Servant of his own free will. She would be forced to waste her first Command Seal to put him in his place.

"You're still alive, Heroic Spirit," she smirked.

Morgan Le Fay is mistaken, he is not a heroic spirit, he is a mage, and he was powerful, but she was far stronger than he anticipated, and despite his valiant attempt to escape from her castle, she had overpowered him, and had tortured him for months.

"I'm not a Heroic Spirit," Shirou snapped angrily. "I'm a human."

"You aren't much of a man now either," she sneered, she'd made sure that the pains and tortures were horrific in nature, but she planned to heal him enough to make him "functional" whether he agreed to help her or not, but she was growing inpatient, she wanted nothing more than to unleash this powerful spirit on Arturia to watch her struggle against this monster as he slaughtered her people and her knights.

She'd read his thoughts with difficulty, his mental shields had been formidable, but she'd learned of his lover called Saber, even though Morgan could not see the woman's image, she knew that Shirou loved her. What better way to hurt him than by ruining his body so he could not make love to this woman, whoever she was.

Shirou glared at her, he was bound and determined to live, he wouldn't die like this in some castle dungeon, tortured to death, he would escape and find Saber, he could endure any pain and torture for her sake, and he wouldn't let the Witch think she'd won because she'd mutilated him. Once he found Saber, she would heal him completely.

At least he hoped so; he'd had his stomach blown out by Berserker, he had not been castrated by Morgan Le Fay.

Still in theory, being around Saber again would heal him, but right now, that wasn't happening. He could really use some morphine right now, it was wishful thinking.

He could withstand this torture, he'd been through worse. He would escape and find Saber, he would see her again.

"I really didn't want to use it, seems like such a waste, but if it will make you my obedient Servant then I will use it!" Morgan Le Fay seethed. "By my first Command Seal, go to the six villages nearby and slay all you see, kill all who try to stop you!"

"I can't. _I won't!_ " Shirou screamed, enraged.

But the Command Seal compelled him to move, but his mind was still completely functional. He was in the worst form of hell he could imagine and he couldn't stop himself. He knew he would kill all those people.

He would not be a hero of justice, but there was something that caused him far more agony.

His evil deeds would cut him off from Saber in Avalon, and Saber in her own present time, how would he be able to look her in the face knowing what he was being forced to do?

Shirou approached the village, as he was stopped by the town guard; he cut them down without a word.

The panic and the screaming would echo in Shirou's ears for eternity. He slew all he saw, even as tears streamed down his face.

All the men and women were dead, the children were almost all dead, save for a few that hid in a barn.

"Demons do not cry. I am a demon because I couldn't cry anymore right? Humans cry, and when their tears finally run dry, there's nothing left but a demon or a monster and one final prayer for death."

The children huddled together, weeping and wailing in fear. Shirou felt he was trapped in a horrific nightmare as his arms raised his swords to strike them down, and he could do nothing to stop himself.

"You mustn't cry, children. Say your prayers before you sleep. Amen children."

His blades passed through them one by one, but as he came to the last child, he used every ounce of his willpower to stay his blades.

"Run!" he screamed through his tears. "RUN!"

The sole survivor of the village did just that.

And so the Archer of Red became the terror of Britain.

The little boy could only hear Shirou's agonized cries as he looked back one last time to see the Archer of Red, kneeling on the ground, his eyes raised to heaven, sobbing in agony.

* * *

 

King Arthur sat on her throne, seething in rage. Over the last six days, six children had begged entrance to Camelot, each bringing with them a horrific tale of the slaughter of their entire villages by one man, an archer in red. They didn't know why he came, but all he did was butcher them like cattle, and any who tried to figt him died horrifically, impaled by dozens of swords.

"My Lord, we must do something!" Lancelot Du Lac shouted. "We shall ride out immediately and slay this man!"

A young man stepped forward, "Father, let my brothers and I go and defeat this Archer of Red, we'll bring back his head with a tale of adventure worthy of the Round Table!"

"No you will not, Amhar!" Arthur gazed down at her son; it had been very difficult for Merlin to help her conceive more children with Guinevere after Morgan Le Fay stole the semen to create Mordred, but she had five sons, Amhar, Gwydre, Llacheu, Duran and Loholt. She loved all of them dearly, raised them well and did not play favorites, but as they grew older, they demanded to know which one of them would succeed her after she died.

The nobles talked, whispering that the King's indulgence with his wife would cause a succession crisis, and people were already taking sides, pressuring the king to choose an heir to the throne of Camelot.

"We are brave and valiant father, we can defeat him," Llacheu agreed with Amhar, "The five of us shall vanquish him!"

"By my faith, my sons will be the death of me!" Arthur groaned, burying her face in her palm. "Your brashness will kill you, have I not taught you to be wary when approaching any mage?"

"But father, we can—" Loholt joined in the chorus.

"No! We will battle this mage with the might of Britain's armies, you'll do as I say and stay here until we are ready to leave!" Arthur glared at her sons. They fell silent and left.

Once they were out of earshot, Duran spoke, "I told you all not to say anything to father, and look how it turned out. He keeps us cooped up in the castle; he won't even send us out on Quests with any of the Round Table!"

"I agree with Duran, but you all dragged me in there," Gwydre sighed.

"Father's gone soft," Amhar smirked. "If we can defeat this mage, surely father will choose one of us as his successor, it will most certainly be me!"

"Oh shut up Amhar!" Llacheu snapped. "If father picks among the five of us, I will become king."

"Pff," Loholt laughed. "I'm far more worthy to be king than all of you."

"If father chooses an heir, it's going to be Gwydre," Duran informed them.

"Me? Why me?" Gwydre asked, stupefied.

"You're the only one who doesn't want it."

"What are we going to do about the mage?" Llacheu asked.

"We're going to kill him of course!" Amhar replied.

"But father said—" Gwydre began.

"Oh, Gwydre, are you going to play the obedient son forever, look, between the five of us, Arthur's sons, this mage won't stand a chance, and we're the best of Camelot's knights!" Amhar said confidently.

"Tell that to Sir Lancelot," Llacheu smirked.

"The Knights of the Round Table haven't gone after this Archer of Red yet, we'll stop him before they do, and between the five of us, a bag of silver for whoever kill him!"

"This isn't a game, Amhar," Gwydre sighed.

"Now where's the fun in that?" Amhar laughed. "We'll leave under cover of darkness and search for this Archer."

That evening they left, and it only took them a few days to find the mysterious Archer in Red, they approached him as he walked down the road towards a nearby village.

"Halt Archer!" a voice shouted to Shirou.

Shirou turned and saw five young men approach him; they wore bright armor and had blonde hair and green eyes.

"Sa…ber…?" he asked, shocked, no, they weren't her, but they all bore a strong resemblance to _her_ , but who _were_ they?

"You will no longer terrorize these lands, Archer of Red, you will fall here!" the young man shouted.

"And who are you?" Shirou asked. He'd never seen any of these men in Arturia's memories.

"We are the sons of King Arthur, I am Amhar, but you won't care about that for long, you'll die quickly!"

_Sons?! Saber has sons?! But the only one I've ever seen is Mordred!_

Then Shirou remembered, it was very obscure Arthurian lore that mentioned Arthur had many sons, by various women depending on the stories, but at least one of them was legitimate, but they all died under unfortunate circumstances, war and betrayal killed them all, but even then, their stories were so obscure that their names were not well known like the Knights of the Round Table.

Shirou notched an arrow that he traced, even as his hands tried to resist the Command Seal which forced him to fight.

Gwydre had fallen back, he hadn't wanted to come in the first place, but it gave him the chance to observe his brothers as they fought the Archer of Red.

"Caladbolg!" he shouted, he fired the arrow. Gwydre could see the arrow as it flew and barely missed his brothers as the aftershock blew them off their feet.

That arrow he fired, it seemed familiar, but it was like something out of a story he'd been told.

Amhar climbed to his feet, unsheathing his sword, he attacked the Archer viciously, only for him to be beaten back by the Archer, with just a short sword.

Suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, Gwydre saw that the man wielded two short swords, they were intricate and beautiful, and unlike any pair of blades he'd seen before.

Every thrust, slash, cut and parry the Archer made only had killing intent behind it.

Gwydre knew they'd foolishly gone out to die.

The man's movements, they were crisp and efficient, they hadn't been expecting an archer that could wield a sword, let alone two. But there was something else that terrified him down to his soul.

This man fought like Father, it wasn't mimicry, but he knew this man whoever he was, had been trained to fight by Father.

_Is he one of Father's allies who betrayed him for Le Fay?_

Gwydre could only stare in awe; the man had reflexes quick as Father's and he could see flourishes of Arthur's swordplay in battle. But when had Father trained such a man, and why?

Amhar was growing frustrated, he'd disarmed this man constantly, but always he had a weapon in his hand, it was like he could pull them from thin air.

Amhar gasped in shock as the Archer short sword opened a wound in his side, all the way from his hip to his chest.

He screamed in agony.

Shirou was mortified, he hadn't wanted to wound him so gravely, but the Command Seal to kill all who tried to stop him was still in effect, but what terrified him more was how slow they were, he was so used to Saber's quick reflexes and nigh unbreakable defense that he'd forgotten that not everyone he fought had her level of skill in swordplay.

"Amhar!" Loholt screamed, "I'll kill you Archer!"

"For your father's sake, stay back, I will kill you, and I don't want to, please! Don't make me do this!"

Two of the five stepped forward to do battle with him.

Then Gwydre heard the Archer utter an incantation, one that he would never forget but would remember with terror and dread for as long as he lived.

_"I am the bone of my sword."_

Gwydre knew in his heart, if he and his brothers remained in the vicinity of this Archer of Red, they would assuredly die.

"Retreat, everyone retreat!"

Only Duran heard him, Loholt, Llacheu, and Amhar paid him no heed, they charged straight at the Archer.

"Steel is my body and fire is my blood. I have created over a thousand blades. Unknown to Death, Nor known to Life. Have withstood pain to create many weapons. Yet, those hands will never hold anything. So as I pray, unlimited blade works."

Shirou knew this was not the true incantation of Unlimited Blade Works, but, rather, one borne of his sorrow and grief of not only the loss of his dear Saber, but the loss of his heroism that Le Fay had forced him to abandon.

Gwydre watched in awe as the world ripped itself apart, and he found himself standing on a hill of swords.

A dozen swords tore themselves out of the ground and flew at him, he managed to dodge most of them, but one embedded itself in his shoulder.

Loholt and Llacheu were skewered through their sides as they tried to make their way towards the Archer.

They were all going to die here, and their father would be deeply grieved. Gwydre gritted his teeth, he would save his brothers and they would return home.

He ran forward and grabbed Amhar and Loholt, Duran grabbed Llacheu and they ran until the world righted itself and they found their horses, they made their way back to Camelot with all speed.

Arthur had been pacing in her bedchamber, worried about her sons' departures; she knew exactly what they were doing.

She looked up when a servant arrived; telling her that her sons had encountered the Archer of Red, but three of them had been gravely wounded.

"Amhar?" Arthur looked at her son in horror. His wounds were so grave, she was amazed he wasn't dead, but he was still alive by some miracle.

"Call the Court physicians! Now!" They took her sons away, trying to staunch the bleeding.

Suddenly, an arrow embedded itself at her feet. She stepped back and gazed up at the battlements of Camelot.

There at the top was the Archer of Red, his red coat made him stand out, along with his bright red hair, she could see his gold eyes gazing down at her, and she glanced to the arrow she had pulled from the ground.

She saw the note attached to it. Arthur opened it and read:

_"Only the magnificent King of Knights may defeat me! I await you, my nemesis!"_

"How dare you mock me, you bastard!" Arthur screamed at the Archer. "I'll send you to Hell!"

"I can't wait to see you again, Saber, my death at your hands will be my salvation."

"Guards, catch him!" Arthur ordered.

"My Lord, he vanished!" they shouted to her as they searched for him.

Arthur clenched her fist, "You're a dead man, Archer!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two Entwine; the Couple Perishes
> 
> Author's Note: I have seen t Heaven's Feel Trilogy (You heard me, TRILOGY, which means, all the love scenes will probably be there!) Trailer, and I can't wait, Sempai will FINALLY notice Sakura, LOL! There was no animation, but the artwork looks lovely! You'll have to use a proxy to view it on YouTube!
> 
> My timeline is very different than the 20 year timeline that the Nasuverse gives for Arturia's reign. The book I read King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table by Roger Lancelyn Green described Arthur as having gray hair by the time the battle of Camlann. Giving Arturia a good long reign just makes it worse than the relatively short one she had in the Nasuverse. So about 50 years, that's the answer I found online for how long people say Arthur ruled Britain. She still has Avalon so she doesn't age, but imagine if Nasu had given her a longer reign than 20 years, we thought her angst was bad in Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay Night, just think if her reign had been longer, triple the angst!

_"Shirou, can you ever forgive me?" Saber asked, leaning against his shoulder. They're sitting together under a tree, on a hill overlooking the city. He's enjoying the view, the breathtaking landscape, he can see Camelot in its shining glory below, but he relishes the sight of the beautiful woman in his arms more. He's holding her as he smiles down at the woman he loves more than anything._

_"What do you mean?" Shirou asks curiously, "What's there to forgive?"_

_"I know that I will stop at nothing to end your life, and even if by some miracle I spare you, I have no doubt I would have your fingers severed."_

_"I'd rather keep my fingers, I can't touch and hold you without them," Shirou ran his fingers through her hair. He kissed her lips softly._

_"I know Shirou; I wish I could do more for you than just speak to you in your dreams."_

_"Tell me Saber, since this is your life I've been dragged into, do you remember both, the time period where I wasn't there, and what's going on now?"_

_"I remember both, but I do not know what will happen to you at the moment."_

_Saber's expression was sad and uncomfortable._

_"And Shirou, my sister…she has mutilated you, and I know there is nothing I can really do about that. I beg your forgiveness…"_

_Shirou laughed, "Of all the things you're sorry for, you mourn the loss of my junk!"_

_"Shirou!" Saber scolded him, "such a horrific thing should have never happened to you. Or have you forgotten that I have been a man, and completely understand that it is quite humiliating to have ones "junk" forcibly removed. You are a wonderful lover, and that aspect of you has been taken away by her."_

_Saber's expression was furious._

_"It's all right, I'll get better," Shirou gave her another grin._

_"Not that my sons will refrain from mocking you if they should see you like that. They will say that you are not a man because you have no wit."_

_Shirou chuckled, "So that's what they call it? My wit will recover, but your son Amhar will always be an ass hat."_

_Saber kissed his cheek, "Amhar always was an ass."_

_"So tell me, Saber, how often have you been a man? You have five sons, they don't just pop out of nowhere."_

_"Six years, if you include Mordred, every time Guenivere and I would try conceive Merlin would turn me into a man that way no one would really notice, the Knights of the Round Table knew and they carried on as usual."_

_"I see," Shirou gazed out at the view. "Camelot really is a lovely place."_

_"I am glad you find my home beautiful," Saber nuzzled his neck._

_"It's only a model," Shirou joked._

_"Must you constantly tease me?" Saber groaned._

_"We're Knights of the Round Table, We dance when e'er we're able_  
_We do routines and chorus scenes With footwork impeccable," the young mage managed to sing before bursting into a fit of laugher._

_"You should not taunt me Shirou, or I will have Merlin feed you to a rabbit."_

_"Really Saber, the killer Rabbit of Caerbannog?" the young mage raised an eyebrow, amused._

_"One does not mock the Rabbit of Caerbannog! It was a miscast spell by Le Fay, she meant to summon an adorable lion cub to trap me, only something went wrong and she summoned the monster in the form of a rabbit instead."_

_"LOOK AT THE BONES!" Shirou uttered in mock horror._

_Saber slapped his chest, "Oh shut up! The whole adventure was so horrible; we blotted every mention of it from the records! It did slaughter my poor men, and I had to kill it with Caliburn! A few years later, she summoned it back!"_

_"What did you do?"_

_"I killed it with Excalibur, I suppose she gave up on summoning monsters and decided summoning Heroic Spirits would be better."_

_"Satisfy my curiosity; is there a dragon of Angnor?"_

_"Yes," she replied._

_"A vicious Chicken of Bristol?"_

_Saber playfully slapped his shoulder again, "Shut up! Shut up!"_

_"See the violence inherent in the system! Help! Help! I'm being repressed!" He burst out laughing._

_Shirou pulled her in for a long, lingering kiss as he embraced her again._

_"So that's how I got dragged into this mess," Shirou sighed. "You know I can't tell you the truth about me right?"_

_"Of course, I would find it nearly impossible to believe that a man from the future is my Master and that I should become a Heroic Spirit for such a tragic reason, and that you are my lover as well, especially since I have never seen myself as a woman. I would never believe that I could be so unsatisfied by my own rule that I would wish to redo it all, let alone wish to erase my own existence."_

_"Yeah, that whole, "I fell in love with you when I accidentally summoned you to the future in my shed" thing won't really sound believable. Let alone that the Holy Grail is corrupted and evil on top of everything else."_

_"The Holy Grail that appeared before me in Camelot was indeed the cup of Christ; it is not the omnipotent wish-granting device that appeared in Fuyuki."_

_"How did you learn about the Grail that appeared in Fuyuki?" Shirou asked curiously._

_"I learned of the wish-granting Grail in my search for the Holy Grail that Christ used."_

_"I see," Shirou took her hand in his._

_Shirou glanced down at Saber. "Saber?"_

_"What is it Shirou?" Saber queried._

_"About Mordred…and May Day, that's something you actually did, it's not just some embellished story about you is it?"_

_Shirou saw tears in Saber's eyes._

_"It is my greatest shame," Saber whispered softly. "I did it because I was afraid; my need for self preservation was my own undoing. I gathered all the children born on May 30th, on pain of death, and sent babies of out to sea to die, and that is something I will carry with me forever. You've seen my many sins yet you still love me."_

_"But you didn't know Mordred was a homunculus," Shirou stroked her cheek, comforting her with an embrace._

_"No, I didn't."_

_"You're not perfect, I thought that Christians said that only God is perfect," Shirou noted._

_"I thought I could be a perfect king, but my foolish decisions ruined me. But we must speak of other things."_

_"Must I wake up?" Shirou smiled._

_"You should wake from your dreams now, Shirou," Saber smiled quietly, "Lest my sons find you asleep and you see me, much sooner than you'd like."_

_"Am I even worthy of that honor?" Shirou's expression was sad._

_"Yes, you are still worthy of it, what you've done is Le Fay's doing, not your own."_

_"I love you, Saber," he leaned over and kissed her._

_"I know," she smiled, returning his kiss. "Wake up, and leave this place, I will pursue you relentlessly."_

_"But my goal in life is to chase you for all eternity," he smiled._

_"And I will wait for you, for all eternity," she smiled. "I will speak to Merlin soon."_

_"He can see you?"_

_"He can, he's one of the few people who that know my true gender and will believe what I tell him regarding you."_

_"That's good, Saber, that's good," Shirou mumbled._

_She gave him one final kiss, "Wake up."_

"Saber…."

Shirou Emiya opened his eyes and looked out over the landscape. There was Camelot in all its glory and splendor, but he knew that he would never be able to enjoy it; he would never pass through its doors as a friend to the King or the Knights of the Round Table.

He turned and headed away, he would have to return to Morgan Le Fay soon, he hated it, but he didn't have a choice, she still had two Command Seals.

After stealing a horse, he returned to Tugan, Morgan Le Fay's castle, he was allowed to pass through the gates and made his way towards his Master's bedchamber.

He could hear a low moan, "Oh _Accolon_!"

Shirou bit back a sigh; he just had to be unlucky enough to find his reprehensible Master in bed with her lover.

He opened the door; Le Fay was straddling Accolon and riding him like a pony. It was an insult to all the ponies in Britain. They both looked rather nasty covered in sweat and he wanted nothing more than to leave like that "Nope, nope, nope" octopus meme he'd seen on the internet.

"I'm sorry Master, I've interrupted something private," he tried to leave as quickly as possible.

"No, I want you to watch, just so I can remind you of the price for disobeying me," she smirked at him.

"I know the price for disobedience Master," Shirou gritted his teeth, "I don't need to be reminded of it."

"Such a pity, you could have been reunited with this Saber of yours if you had willingly joined me. You followed my orders?"

"Of course Master, I cannot disobey a Command Seal."

"You're a good dog, Archer," Le Fay smiled wickedly. She was rocking her body against her lover, "Oh that's good, I'm so close!"

She glared at him, "You're watching us until I'm finished, Archer!"

"A pity it's not titillating at all," Shirou smirked.

Morgan Le Fay used her magic to cause him so much pain that he collapsed in agony, groaning.

He heard her screaming as she apparently got off on his anguish.

"Get out!" Le Fay looked over and glowered at him.

" _Finally_!" he said in relief.

Shirou staggered down the hallway.

"I feel so dirty, I need brain bleach and a shower, but most of all, brain bleach!" Shirou sighed miserably.

Shirou groaned, wishing Saber would kill him; a quick death by Excalibur seemed immensely preferable to watching Le Fay hump Accolon.

It was a long, miserable night. Shirou would have very little rest, drifting in and out of sleep; he strained to listen to the voice of the one he loved, who was there and yet not there, all at the same time.

* * *

 

King Arthur sat at Amhar's bedside; the physicians had successfully staunched the bleeding and bandaged his wounds.

"My Lord, he will live, but it will be some time before he's back on his feet."

"Good, good," Arthur said to herself.

"Father?" Amhar asked, "Is that you?"

"Yes, I am here, and you are lucky to be here too, a few more hours and you would have been beyond our aid. You should be dead, boy; this will teach you a lesson, next time you should listen to your father," Arthur rested a hand on his head.

"I try Father," Amhar insisted, "I thought that we could take him and prevent more bloodshed."

"He was too strong, there has never been anyone like him, he was a talented swordsman, not some peasant mindlessly flailing about," Amhar continued.

"Did you notice it Amhar?" Loholt asked, "That his movements and swordplay were similar to Father's?"

" _What?!_ " Arthur asked in astonishment.

"Yes, he fought like you Father," Amhar stared over at Arthur.

"Is he a knight who trained with Father and Sir Kay when they were children?" Gwydre asked.

"I have seen his face and I do not know him," Arthur frowned, puzzled.

It made no sense to her that she would have trained him. Perhaps it was a trick of the light her sons had seen that made it appear that he fought like her. She would think more on this unsettling subject.

"What have the physicians said about us Father?" Duran spoke up from his bed.

"The physicians have told me you will recover," Arthur smiled at them. "Now my sons, tell me of your misadventure, leave nothing unsaid! Tell me everything!"

So they told their father everything, every word the Archer uttered, every blow struck during battle.

Gwydre noticed his Father's countenance as he spoke of the Archer; she seemed puzzled that the Archer would beg them not to attack him, as if he were under a spell. Perhaps he was, but how could Arthur pardon the man's actions when hundreds of her people had died?

The Archer had begged them for Arthur's sake to not to attack him.

Why for my sake, I wonder, Arthur pondered.

 _This man is a stranger to me, it is a trick, it must be_ , Arthur put it out of her mind.

"Father, the spell he used, it was otherworldly, he could rip apart the world and we found ourselves standing on a hill of swords. He could use them at his whim and it is how we were wounded, we cannot block a dozen swords at once." Gwydre sighed. "What can we do against a being akin to a god?"

"We will defeat him, I have never known defeat, and I will not taste it now!" Arthur reassured them. "As soon as you are able, I will send you out with a scouting party Amhar."

"I thank you for your confidence in me Father, I will slay the Archer."

"I will leave you all to rest," Arthur got up and left them.

She walked down the hall towards the Round Table; the Knights were waiting for her.

"Arturia," Merlin called to her.

"Merlin? What do you want Mage of Flowers?" she asked, trying to hide her irritation at being called upon during this important meeting by her teacher.

"Arturia, I don't like this, any of it," Merlin told her, his voice was grave.

"The sooner we put an end to the Archer, the sooner we will have peace," Arthur muttered.

"Everything about that mage's presence here is wrong, but I fear killing him will have dire consequences."

"Consequences? What consequences?" Arthur asked, concerned.

"I don't know yet, but I intend to find out," Merlin bowed and left her alone.

King Arthur took her place at the Round Table; they would now discuss how to defeat the Archer of Red.


End file.
